


His Tulips On Mine

by angelofthequeers



Series: Beelicious [3]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - Flower Shop, Angst, Cas loves touching Dean, Castiel Has Issues, Castiel has Anxiety, Dean Winchester Has Issues, Flowers, Fluff, Kissing, Language of Flowers, M/M, Picnics, Romance, Second dates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-05
Updated: 2017-07-05
Packaged: 2018-11-23 17:43:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,140
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11407365
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/angelofthequeers/pseuds/angelofthequeers
Summary: Dean and Cas' second date! Featuring: overprotective sister Charlie, near-anxiety attacks, talk of shitty exes, and Dean being such a fucking romantic that Cas will probably die of tooth decay.Oh, and flowers. Because what better way to a florist's heart than speaking through flowers?





	His Tulips On Mine

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own SPN.
> 
> So I went back and changed one of Jess’ lines in the first one to edit how long she and Sam have been together, because I’ve been sketching a rough outline of this series and one prompt requires me to change that timing ;)
> 
> (AlsosorryabouttheshittyflowerpuntitlesIjustkindalikethem)

“Slow day?”

Cas’ head whips around and a wide smile spreads across his face when he sees who’s standing at the counter.

“Dean!”

He nearly launches himself over the counter in his haste to throw his arms around Dean’s neck. Dean laughs in his ear – a sound that sends tingles down Cas’ spine – and he wraps his arms around Cas’ waist. Cas shivers and melts into the touch. Okay, so he _is_ needy. So what?

When Dean pulls back, he presses a quick kiss to Cas’ lips. Cas’ nerves light up like a Christmas tree as he eagerly kisses back, moving one hand to cup Dean’s face with a soft groan.

“Am I interrupting something?” a female voice says. Cas immediately jumps away from Dean, heat rushing to his cheeks. But Dean doesn’t act embarrassed at all; in fact, he just rolls his eyes at the redhead standing behind him with her arms crossed.

“Hi, Charlie,” he says in a long-suffering voice. The woman – Charlie – raises an eyebrow at Cas, who shifts nervously.

“So, this is why you’ve been so weirdly happy lately?” Charlie says. Immediately, Cas’ heart starts to race. Is this Charlie woman Dean’s girlfriend? Had he been lying about his ex? Or had he decided to get together with Charlie and sneak around with Cas behind her back? Is that all Cas is: a side dick?

“Charlie –” Dean groans.

“You listen to me, mister.” Charlie turns to Cas, arms still crossed. “If I murder someone, Dean’s the person I’d call to help me drag the corpse along the living room floor.”

“Charlie!”

“Hurt him and I break you. Got that?”

“Yeah,” Cas squeaks, struggling to force air into his iron lungs. Then his brain skids to a halt. “Wait – what?”

Charlie sighs loudly.

“He’s my best friend. You hurt him, I kill you. Capiche?”

“Charlie, you’re gonna give him a fuckin’ anxiety attack!” Dean snaps. He grabs Cas’ hands and squeezes. “Breathe, Cas. Focus on me. I’m here, got it?”

Cas nods, gaze fixed on Dean’s bright green eyes. He’s not sure what exactly he can see in them, other than the fact that they’re such a beautiful shade of green, but whatever Dean can see in his is apparently enough for the other man to pull him into a crushing hug.

“Oh my gosh, I am _so_ sorry!” Charlie gasps. Her hands fly to her mouth, which is the last thing Cas sees before burying his face in Dean’s shoulder and gasping in the man’s scent of leather and alcohol and motor oil. “He just got hurt by Crowley and I wanted to make sure that you weren’t gonna do that and I’ve wanted to use that _Grey’s Anatomy_ speech for _ages_ and damn, if I’d known this would happen –”

“No,” Cas says faintly, clenching fistfuls of Dean’s shirt as he uses Dean’s smell to help ground him. “That wasn’t – I assumed you were – I didn’t know –”

There’s silence for a moment. Just as Cas is beginning to wish that he could see Charlie’s face –

“Oh my gosh, you thought I was –? No, no, no! I’ve got a girlfriend, Cas! Dean’s like my big brother!”

“I’m sorry,” Cas says miserably. Geez, if he doesn’t calm down soon, he’s just going to burst into tears like a baby, and won’t that be a sight for Dean? “I shouldn’t have thought Dean would –”

“Hey, no.” A hand starts to stroke Cas’ hair and he tenses, then melts. “Don’t even worry about it, Cas. Didn’t help that she turned up looking like a pissed girlfriend.”

“What? I didn’t know I looked pissed! I was going for the Spock look!”

“Cas, tell us about this place. Why’d you open a flower shop? And why’d you call it Beelicious?”

Cas takes a deep, shuddering breath.

“I’ve always loved bees and flowers and nature, but Mom and Dad hated that I loved them because they thought that liking ‘girly’ stuff was ‘gay’, and they wanted me to succeed in life. So when I was ten…”

For the next ten minutes, Cas rambles about his love of bees and horticulture as he forces himself to calm down. By the time he’s babbling about how he needed to get away from his family in Chicago and their expectations of producing another well-paid professional (without going into _too_ much detail of course), his heart rate is largely back to normal and his chest doesn’t feel so much like a steel box anymore.

“I’m sorry,” Cas says thickly. When he finally raises his head, blinking rapidly in the sudden light, he sees that Charlie’s looking at him with what looks like pity, and irrational anger surges in him. “I’m not delicate! You don’t need to treat me like – like I’m made of glass!”

Charlie raises her hands in surrender.

“Never said that, Cas,” she says. Then she sighs and looks at Dean. “I’m gonna go, okay? I’ve caused enough shit today.”

“You don’t have to –” Cas tries to say.

“See you around, Cas!”

The sound of the bell chime as Charlie leaves the store just drops a heavier stone in Cas’ stomach.

“I’m sorry,” he says miserably. “Charlie’s your friend and I –”

“Cas, shut up.” Dean pulls back and kisses Cas on the forehead. Somehow, this makes Cas feel even worse. “That’s just what she’s like, okay? Sometimes she goes too far and we both know it. Doesn’t mean I love her any less.”

“Well, getting anxious at the drop of a hat is clearly just what I’m like,” Cas mutters. Dean kisses him on the head again.

“Well, you can’t really help it when your brain decides to fuck you over. Hey, you’re free tomorrow, right?”

“Yes. I close the shop on Sundays. Why –”

“Just wear something nice, okay? Casual but nice. I’ll pick you up at twelve.”

He kisses Cas on the lips and then leaves with a parting smile. Great. Now Cas has a whole day to work himself up over whatever Dean’s planning.

* * *

 Despite Dean saying that he’d be at Cas’ apartment at twelve, Cas is ready by eleven thirty, paranoid that he’ll be late even if he’s ready by twelve like Dean said.

He spends twenty minutes agonising over what to wear – what if he’s too casual? Not casual enough? What if this shade of red makes him look like the ugliest person alive? Do these jeans make his ass look fantastic or hideously huge? – and _finally_ decides on jeans paired with a white button-down, sleeves rolled to his elbows. That’s safe enough, right? Then he spends the next ten minutes debating what to do with his hair, until he finally throws his hands up and leaves it messy like on his first date. Dean hadn’t had any objections then, so he shouldn’t now.

“God, I’m worse than Balthazar,” Cas mumbles, pacing around his living room. Rationally, he knows Dean won’t give a damn what he wears. He seems like such a cool guy and he seems to really be into Cas…

But then, that’s what Cas had thought about Arthur, hadn’t he? He’d thought that the suave Brit was a gentleman; the perfect boyfriend. Arthur hadn’t cared about Cas’ appearance…at least, not at first.

A knock on the door makes Cas actually jump. Shooting a look at the clock hanging on his wall, he sees that it’s only two minutes past twelve. Had he really been trapped in his own thoughts for half an hour?

When he opens the door, he’s greeted with a blinding smile and a kiss from Dean.

“Okay, that’s not fair,” Dean says when he steps back and looks Cas up and down. “You’re too fucking hot, Cas.”

Cas can’t help but laugh and duck his head.

“How is that unfair, Dean?”

“Do you know how hard it’ll be to keep my hands to myself when you’re that damn sexy? I ain’t gonna touch you until you want it…but damn, Cas.”

Cas’ smile vanishes. Is Dean genuinely trying to compliment him? Or is he trying to guilt Cas into putting out? The terrifying thing is, Cas knows that he _would_ let Dean play him if they were closer and more in love. After all, he let Arthur get into his head, and Meg had successfully silenced him from protesting about her infidelity with her arguments of only wanting a sexual relationship (which he might have taken more seriously if she hadn’t gotten pissed at him even smiling at other women in greeting). Once he’s close enough, he’s putty in his partner’s hands.

Yeah, he sure can pick them.

“What’s wrong?” Dean’s clearly noticed Cas’ change in attitude and when he tries to take Cas’ hand, Cas jerks away. “Hey, what’d I do wrong?”

“Nothing,” Cas says roughly. He takes a deep breath. “It’s just…if you – _want_ something – just don’t play games? Please? I don’t have the best… _track record_ with partners.”

Dean frowns at him for a moment, before his face clears.

“What – Cas, no! I wasn’t trying to fuck with your head! I was trying to tell you how fucking sexy you are.”

Now Cas looks away, because trust him to misinterpret a compliment like that. No wonder Inias had packed up after a month. He jumps when soft fingers touch his chin and guide his head back around.

“Sorry. I’ll stop touching you if you don’t want me to.”

“It’s not – you _can_ touch me, Dean! I’m not delicate!”

“I didn’t say that. I just wanna know what I can and can’t do, so I don’t fuck up. I’m serious about this, Cas. We’ve only been on one date but…I feel _something_ for you. I really wanna see where that goes.”

Cas blinks back tears. Fuck his exes. Fuck them to _Hell_ , because he _wants_ to believe Dean so damn much right now.

“I – want to believe you.” His voice cracks. “I really do, Dean. I just… _can’t_. Not right now.”

He shivers when Dean leans in and kisses him softly, not demanding in any way and not putting any pressure on him whatsoever.

“I get it. I’m gonna do whatever it takes to earn your trust, got that? I don’t care how long I have to wait.”

Cas actually makes a choked sound at that. Dean immediately scoops him up into a loose hug, carding his fingers through Cas’ messy hair.

“I’m sorry,” Cas mumbles. “I’m just giving you grief with my issues.”

To his surprise, Dean gives a dark laugh.

“You think I don’t have issues of my own? I just got good at hiding them from everyone. I – Cas, I’m _terrified_ right now. Letting you in means you get to see my shit and…that’s scary as hell, man. Last time someone saw my dirty laundry, they walked out on me. So I _get_ how hard it is for you. And that’s why I’m willin’ to do whatever it takes.”

Cas shudders in Dean’s arms. This is not fair. This is _not_ fair. How is Dean so goddamn amazing already?

“Cas…was it just your family? Or did your exes –”

“Not now,” Cas interrupts. “I’ll tell you one day but…not now.”

“Fair enough.”

They stand in silence for a moment, tangled together in their embrace, until Dean pulls back and smiles toothily.

“C’mon, Cas! I promised a surprise and you’re getting a surprise.”

***

“Arthur, Meg, and Inias,” Cas says suddenly into the silence in the car when they’re about thirty minutes into the drive. Dean jerks slightly in surprise.

“Huh?”

“Those are my exes.” Cas swallows. “Arthur, Meg, Inias. I – I don’t want to talk about them now but…I just thought you deserved to know their names.”

Dean nods thoughtfully, hands clenched slightly around the steering wheel.

“Benny, Lisa, Cassie, and Crowley,” he says. “Those are mine. I don’t mind telling you about ‘em if that’s the sorta thing you wanna hear.”

Cas nods at once. Any chance to get to know Dean, he’ll take; especially one like this, where talking about one’s exes might not always be on the table.

“Benny was actually cool,” Dean says, frowning slightly as he thinks. “That was way back in high school. Mostly kept it a secret ‘cause Dad would’ve had a fit if he found out, but that didn’t matter when we broke up in senior year.”

Cas wants to ask why but his mouth won’t form the word.

“He found someone else. Andrea, her name is. And boy, he deserves her. They’re married now and I still keep in touch. I just…don’t see Benny much anymore, since he lives in Louisiana. Then I graduated and had a thing with Lisa. She was nice enough…but then shit started going down in my life. I – I don’t really wanna –”

“Dean, you don’t have to tell me anything you don’t want to,” Cas says firmly. Dean gives him a relieved smile.

“Thanks, Cas. So shit went down, I got more fucked up than I already was, and Lisa eventually couldn’t handle it. Don’t blame her, though. She was cool while it was happening…she just couldn’t deal with the aftermath.”

Before he can think about it, Cas reaches out and takes one of Dean’s hands, lacing their fingers together. Dean’s mouth curves into a tiny smile. As much as a small part of Cas is suspicious of this being a manipulation attempt, the rest of him can’t help but believe Dean. There’s just something so…raw about him right now, and anyone who could fake this is either a brilliant actor or an attention seeker. And from what he’s seen of Dean so far, the man’s anything but an attention seeker.

“So then there was Cassie when I was twenty two. She was a firecracker, man. We spent half our time arguing and the other half having angry make-up sex. Not that you probably wanna hear that sorta thing.”

Cas snorts.

“I’m fine, Dean.”

“Cassie copped the brunt of my issues, ‘cause that’s when shit really started to go down. Sammy left for college and Dad…didn’t exactly agree. So Cassie was there to pick up the pieces. Guess she couldn’t handle it.”

Dean shrugs.

“Then there’s Crowley, who you already sorta know about. Let’s just say that we were mostly in it for the drunken nights out in the bars and in the bedsheets.”

“And now there’s me,” Cas says carefully. Dean squeezes his hand.

“And I don’t plan on you becoming an ex if I can help it. Just…I just gotta warn you, Cas. You think I’m all cool and stuff but…I do got issues. And you’ll see ‘em if you stick around.”

Rolling his eyes, Cas leans over and kisses Dean on the cheek.

“And you get to see mine, so I think that makes us even.”

Dean laughs as they pull into a parking lot.

“Right, we’re here, so no more shitty talk. Capiche? All I wanna hear outta you is sunshine and rainbows.”

“From my mouth or my ass?” Cas says sarcastically as they cross around to the Impala’s trunk. “Sorry to disappoint, but I don’t think I can shoot rainbows out of my ass like a goddamn unicorn.”

Dean actually doubles over in laughter, slapping the trunk of the car. Cas grins proudly.

“Shuddup and help me with this,” Dean chokes, wiping his eyes. Cas dutifully pops the lid and opens the trunk, and Dean grabs a large basket and hauls it out.

“You planned a _picnic_?” Cas says in disbelief.

“You bet your sweet ass I did. C’mon, there’s a great spot over there.”

The spot that Dean’s talking about turns out to be under the shade of a towering oak tree, with an amazing view of a nearby field of sunflowers. Cas is transfixed by the sight.

“Thought you might enjoy the view,” Dean says. When Cas looks at Dean, who’s spreading the picnic blanket, he’s surprised to see a fond smile on the man’s face. “I asked around for any good picnic spots near flowers and Jo told me about this place. Apparently, her ex used to take her here on dates.”

“It’s amazing,” Cas whispers, face slowly spreading into a wide smile as he sits down on the blanket. Dean sits down too, then clears his throat.

“I, uh…got you these,” he says, opening the basket. From inside, he produces a bunch of yellow tulips, and Cas’ eyes widen almost impossibly.

“‘There’s sunshine in your smile’,” he murmurs, accepting the bouquet. Dean grins almost self-consciously.

“I love it when you smile, Cas,” he says. “You look like a goddamn angel when you do. Just thought you’d wanna know.”

Cas groans and hides his face in the yellow flowers.

“Stop flattering me,” he says, his voice slightly muffled. Dean laughs and rests a hand on Cas’ knee.

“Hey, just tellin’ you the truth, man.”

While Cas stares at the sunflowers in a trance, tulips clutched close to his chest, Dean unpacks the food from the basket. He’s packed a decent spread: sandwiches, leftover chicken wings, homemade pizza, chocolate chip cookies, and a box of savoury crackers. When he makes a trip back to the Impala, he returns with a cooler, in which he’s stashed a few bottles of beer and cans of Coke, along with some dip for the crackers.

“This is amazing!” Cas says, taking in the food with a slightly agape mouth. “You made all this?”

“Well, the chicken wings are leftovers from the Roadhouse,” Dean says, rubbing the back of his neck. “I only made the sandwiches, pizza, and cookies. I would’ve made my burgers but they’re better hot than cold.”

“You did all this for _me_?”

“Why not? I haven’t been on a picnic in ages, man. Thought you deserved to be spoiled for the afternoon.”

In a flash, Cas finds himself in Dean’s lap, crushing his lips to Dean’s in a messy kiss. He’s surprised at his daring and surprised at how much he loves this, even though he knows that they won’t be taking it further than this. For one, they’re kind of in a public place, and he doesn’t particularly want to be arrested for public indecency. And for another, he’s not ready to go that far yet, no matter how infatuated he is with Dean.

“I gotta do this more often, if that’s what I get,” Dean slurs when Cas pulls away. Cas grins at the dazed look on Dean’s face.

“You don’t need to do flashy things to impress me, Dean.” Cas pecks Dean on the lips and slides off his lap but snuggles into his side, relishing the physical contact. “I just really kind of like you right now.”

Dean beams and wraps an arm around Cas’ waist.

“I really kinda like you too, Cas.”


End file.
